WTN: Weekend Wines

[Brad Ballinger]

2001 Muller-Catoir Haardter Burgergarten Riesling Kabinett Halbtrocken, Pfalz. This wine is still on the youngish side. It has a color that is a bit more golden than most kabinetten wines, and a depth that coincides with the color. The aromas are heavy on the diesel, sulfur, mineral side suggesting the wine needs a bit of air to allow some of the honeyed citrus and floral aromas to share the stage. Taking a sip, one gets a mouthful of flavors ranging from lemon to golden delicious apples wrapped around a slate/rocky mineral core. There isn't much sweetness to the wine, and what is present is more honey than sugar. There's a fair amount of acid, which makes the wine a great food partner. But it's not overwhelmingly acidic or tart. There is wonderful balance of fruit, mineral, acid, and sweetness. The world needs more wines like this one.

1996 Huet "Le Haut Lieu" Vouvray Sec. I remember having this wine a couple of times much closer to the release date than to today's date, and the wine was juicy, saliva-producing, brightly acidic, and an explosion inside the mouth. Several years later, the wine is still all that plus. There is some added resin/beeswax complexity to the still bright lemon and quince flavors. The nose is primarily mineral and closed yet. In the mouth, it packs an acidic punch with plenty of fruit and mineral. More of the resiny qualities come through on the finish. I don't think this wine is done developing yet.

1998 Barone Ricasoli Casalferro. This is an IGT wine made of primarily sangiovese with perhaps a modicum of merlot. It is aged in barrique for 18 months. This summer I had the 1997 Casalferro, which I greatly prefer to this 1998. However, I would guess the masses would give the nod to the 1998. Comparatively, the 1998 has a stronger ripened berry and oak profile. The 1997 was more austere and accented by a graphite minerality that is missing from the 1998. Perhaps the wine will reveal some more dimension with time. It was a pleasant enough wine, but nothing that would make me pick up the bottle to find out what I was drinking if I didn't already know.